Graduate Diversity

MBA Student Support Services

Learn what it is like to be a Smeal MBA student. Examine our current class profile, student blogs, student organizations, and much more.

Minority Involvement Opportunities

Minority MBA Association

The purpose of the Minority MBA Association (MMBAA) is to add value to the Penn State community through continual diversity awareness and recruiting events. The MMBAA strives to create a sense of community by providing a strong support base for professional development and enhancing the academic experience of MBA students.

View the Minority MBA Association page for more details regarding minority MBA involvement.

Diversity Appreciation Weekend (DAW)

Diversity Appreciation Weekend (DAW) is hosted by the Minority MBA Association (MMBAA) under the guidance of Dr. Vernis Welmon, assistant dean for diversity enhancement at Smeal, with the assistance of the MBA program staff.

DAW is an opportunity for prospective students to gain valuable insights and information on the Smeal MBA program. The purpose of the event is to encourage qualified students to attend Penn State by familiarizing them with our facilities, faculty, staff, students, and alumni. The weekend involves interaction among prospective and current students, alumni, faculty, and staff. It also exposes prospective students to the culture, work ethic, and the demands and challenges of the MBA program.

2009 Diversity Appreciation Weekend

This year The Smeal School of Business will be celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Diversity at Smeal!!

2009 Diversity Appreciation Weekend will be held the weekend of April 3-5. Please mark your calendars and save the date for this event! If you would like to attend the DAW weekend this year please contact, the Office of Diversity Enhancement at 814-863-0448 or e-mail agh127@psu.edu.

2008 Diversity Appreciation Weekend

Diversity Appreciation Weekend in April 2008 was a tremendous success! We kicked things off with a reception and Association Night on Thursday, followed by a mixer giving the returning, current, and potential minority MBA’s a chance to meet and socialize. After a full day of campus tours and information sessions Friday was capped off with a trip to Downtown State College for a little taste if the nightlife! On Saturday the fun continued with the annual Alumni Panel discussion at the Atherton Hotel. The discussion was seen as one of the highlights of the weekend allowing the prospective students to candidly address issues ranging from academic issues to cultural concerns.  

The main event, the Diversity Appreciation banquet, was held at the Nittany Lion Inn. Special thanks to Vern Taylor, of the National Basketball Association, for a timely and inspiring keynote address. We benefited from his thoughtful and inspirational words. Mr. Taylor shared his story of tenacity, and taught us not to take no for an answer if we have a dream.  In addition to being inspirational, Vern has always been generous, as was documented by his monumental donation of candy to the Office of Diversity Enhancement.

In 2007 the Kimmel’s challenged Smeal alumni to raise contributions of $20,000. If this goal was achieved, the amount would be matched by Harvey and Virginia. Our alumni were not only successful in donating $20,000, but exceeded the goal! We appreciate all of your gifts and efforts. Harvey and Virginia Kimmel continued to show unyielding support to the Office of Diversity Enhancement and its efforts by holding true to their promise and giving a donation of $20,000 to the Scholarship Fund.  The example set by the Kimmel family, and the collective actions of our alumni community exemplify what Penn State represents. The highlight of the evening was the pledge made by the $15,450 made by the 2008 minority class. The MMBAA board of was instrumental in driving and implementing the effort.  We would like to thank the students from the class of 2008 for making this happen, and challenge future classes to uphold the tradition. 

The NBMBAA Career Fair

The NBMBAA Career Fair provides this unique opportunity annually for MBA students to build relationships with potential organizations to target within their job search, share their resumes, explore job opportunities, and informally interview with human resources and corporate recruiters. To learn more about this opportunity, log on to www.nbmbaa.org/conference_career.cfm#career

2008 NBMBAA Career Fair

On September 17-20, 2008, over 30 Penn State Smeal MBA students will travel Washington, D.C. to attend the 2007 National Black MBA Association Conference and Career Fair (NBMBAA). This event is an excellent opportunity to network with representatives from large companies, connect with Smeal alumni, and interview for internships or post-MBA careers. The 2007 over 60% of the 2008 and 2009 minority class received either full-time or internship offers at the conference. Additionally, Smeal was well represented in the NBMBAA Case Competition sponsored by The Chrysler Foundation.

2008 NBMBAA Case Competition

Each year, a team of students represents the Smeal College of Business in the NBMBAA Case Competition. The 2008 National Black MBA Case Competition team will be comprised of second-year students, Carl Asher, Reginald Amoa, and Tai Parks. The competition gives our students the opportunity to recommend solutions to actual business problems before an executive panel and be judged competitively against students from other nationally ranked business schools. The team has had two weeks from the start of the semester to compile a strategy that most effectively addresses the issues. This year the competition will be hosted by Chrysler LLC in Washington, D.C., from September 17-20.

The 2007 team [Mohammed Mijindadi, Omar Moore, and Chris Thomas] excelled at last year’s competition presenting a well-formulated business resolution strategy and advancing to the finals. They also earned a finalist trophy for Smeal as one of the six finalists from the competition. The team was recognized by fellow competitors and Chrysler LLC representatives for their hard work and insight.

The National Society of Hispanic MBAs (NSHMBA)

The National Society of Hispanic MBAs (NSHMBA) hosts an annual conference where attendees can immense themselves in various outlets ranging from exploring workshops to networking with professionals to landing their dream job. For more information, log on to www.nshmba.org.

2008-2009 Kick-off

On September 7, 2008 the Minority MBA Associations kicked things off with their first professional development session of the semester, How to Work a Career Fair. The session was led by 2003 Smeal Alum Karen Hill. During the session Karen outlining useful strategies for career fairs to maximize their efforts and results. The session was well attended by first and second year students preparing to attend the National Black MBA Conference in Washington D.C.